Main Airport in Miami Has No Timetable for Reopening

Monday, September 11th, 2017

David Ancetti

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The largest airport in Florida has started to pick up the pieces following the wrath of Hurricane Irma on Saturday and Sunday, but it remained uncertain when the airport would reopen for flight service.

Miami International Airport will not open Monday, after it sustained significant water damage, according to its CEO Emilio Gonzalez.

Late Sunday, the airport released a tweet that said it needed to assess all damages prior to deciding when passenger flight would resume.

The airport’s difficulties have added to the chaos in transportation for residents of Florida brought on by Irma. The situation is a big problem for American Airlines, the largest air carrier in the U.S., as it uses Miami as its major hub.

The airline said early Sunday that it would have limited operations at its hub in Monday starting Monday at 5 p.m., but the airline’s plan was then shelved following the latest announcement Sunday night by airport officials.

Initially the airport tweeted it would start limited commercial flight Tuesday, but it deleted that later and released one later warning that the damage level still had to be fully assessed.

American said as the storm approached that any resumption of flights to Miami would depend upon the conditions of the airport and the roads leading to the airport since staff might not even have a way to reach their work stations.

Late Sunday the airport said some airlines would be flying in workers Monday preparing for flight resumption.

The full extent of the damage from the hurricane at the Miami airport, the 12th largest in the U.S., was not clear late Sunday. However, the airport’s CEO has tweeted earlier on Sunday that wind gusts reaching 94 miles per hour had been recorded there.

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, which is located nearby, was also closed Monday and announced late Sunday it continued to assess the damages and was making needed repairs.

Early Monday, Irma continued its trek north through the state battering airports in Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville along the way with winds reaching hurricane force.

The storm may possibly cause even further problems in areas north of the state including in Atlanta, which is home to the world’s busiest airport.

Delta Air Lines, which has its base in Atlanta, announced it was monitoring the track of Irma closely.